New National Survey Commissioned by Care.com Finds a Third of Working Fathers Believe that the Demands of Their Jobs Interfere with Their Ability to be Good Parents; Fathers Twice as Likely to Feel this way as Mothers
Nearly Half (48 Percent) of Working Parents with Young Children Believe That Spending Time with the Family can Impact their Professional Development
Waltham, MA (June 10, 2011) – Perhaps this Father’s Day (Sunday, June 19), we should give dads a break rather than a new tie. According to a new national survey commissioned by Care.com (http://www.care.com), one third (33 percent) of working fathers (compared to 15 percent of working mothers) believe that the demands of their jobs interfere with their ability to be good fathers.
Care.com, the premier source of trustworthy family care options, including profiles of hundreds of thousands of babysitters, nannies, and senior caregivers, found in its survey that nearly half (48 percent) of working parents with children younger than 12 agree that choosing to spend more time with the family can impact their professional development.
The survey also revealed that nearly half (48 percent) of working parents with children younger than 12 agree that choosing to spend more time with the family can impact their professional development.
While seventy percent of employed people reveal that daily distractions prevent them from getting work done during the workday, three in ten (30 percent) of working parents with children under 12 years old are often distracted at work by a childcare issue, such as a sick child.
“We were surprised to learn that fathers are twice as likely as mothers to feel that the demands of their jobs are interfering with their ability to be good parents,” said Sheila Marcelo, Founder and CEO of Care.com. “More parents today – men and women – feel the demands of work enter into their personal lives, and that’s creating a great deal of anxiety. We believe that employers need to address these sentiments, and provide solutions to decrease distractions, in order to maintain focus among the workforce.”
This report presents the findings of two telephone surveys conducted among a national probability sample of 2,018 adults, men and women 18 years of age and older. Interviewing for this CARAVAN®survey was completed by ORC International during the period of May 5-9, 2011.
About Care.com, Inc.
Founded in 2006, Care.com is the largest and fastest growing service used by families to find high-quality caregivers, providing a trusted place to easily connect, share caregiving experiences and get advice. The company addresses the unique lifecycle of care needs that each family goes through-child care, special needs care, tutoring and lessons, senior care, pet care, housekeeping and more. The service helps families find and select the best care available based on detailed profiles, background checks and references for hundreds of thousands of mom-reviewed and pre-screened providers who seek to share their services. Through its Care.com Employer Program, corporations can offer Care.com memberships as a benefit to employees. www.care.com.
